Title: ⟫ Romance Languages
Author: ⟫ A.J. Truman
Rating: ⟫ 2.5/5
Blurb: ⟫ Can my straight friend help me cash in my v-card by my birthday?
In one month, I turn thirty-five with my virginity still intact. Is there anything more embarrassing than knowing most of my French students have gotten more action than me? Je suis triste
When I accidentally reveal this secret to my close friend and co-worker Seamus, South Rock’s baseball coach, he offers to help me round the bases.
It has to be a joke, because Seamus is one million percent straight.
There’s no way he’d want to fool around with a chubby language nerd like me, even though I’ve harbored a secret crush on him since the day he first walked into the teachers' lounge.
But then I realize he’s not joking.
I’m either entering thirty-five with a bang…or a friendship going up in flames.
Romance Languages is a virgin, nerd/jock, friends-to-lovers romance filled with humor and heart. It's the third book in the South Rock High but can be read as a standalone.
Review: ⟫ Based on the other reviews I’ve seen for this book, I have to assume that this is most definitely a case of it just not being the right book at the right time.
I applaud how the idea of being plus-size in a judgemental world was handled – realistic yet sensitive, and not going for the ‘easy’ answer of having the protagonist lose weight. So where did this book lose me?
Seamus. This completely and utterly straight man not only volunteers to ‘help’ his gay best friend work his way around the bases but leads the way and knows pretty much exactly what he’s doing with nary a qualm about where he sits on the Kinsey scale.
Add to that the surface level Seamus’s addiction was handled (we never saw him attend a single meeting despite this being one of the main facets of his character and who he is) and the fact that, despite his lack of funds, there was only one occasion where money was an issue for him – for example, he buys a new suit for a wedding when only recently he’s been unable to buy a bottle of wine. It sometimes felt like an almost incestuous set of friendships and ‘couples’ from previous stories which were a little offputting, especially as the book states that it can be read as a standalone (which it can if you don’t mind feeling like you’re missing out on a lot of in-jokes) and this book simply didn’t work for me.
However, I would very much say YMMV – the writing style is engaging, the dialogue witty and fun, and the storyline good. As I said, just not the right book for me.
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